Legislators are back in Pierre for the 2019 Legislative Session and Tuesday’s State of the State is the first of several big speeches to come. Wednesday is the State of the Judiciary and Thursday, the State of the Tribes. Lawmakers will just begin to look at some of the bills before them – including presumptive probation, nursing home funding, a…
PIERRE, S.D.- Saturday, March 5th marked the 2019 South Dakota Inauguration at the state capitol in Pierre. South Dakota lawmakers and leaders were sworn into office but the main event was to welcome in the new governor. Thousands of people gathered at the state capitol to witness history. Kristi Noem was sworn in as the 33rd governor of the State…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.-On Friday Senator John Thune was in Sioux Falls to talk about the federal farm bill that was just passed by Congress. He met with some of the agricultural organizations that had a lot of input in shaping the bill in the first place. Senator Thune thanked several AG organizations from corn growers to dairy farmers for their…
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says chief of staff John Kelly will leave his job at the end of the year. Trump isn’t saying immediately who will replace Kelly, a retired Marine general who has served as chief of staff since July 2017. But the president says an announcement about a replacement will be coming in the next day…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A Sioux Falls political science professor is calling it “the wave of the woman.” A record number of women are breaking a glass ceiling and running for office. We know you’ll find more women on the ballot, but are the odds stacked against these political pioneers? According Augustana University political science professor Emily Wanless, the…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.- George Hendrickson spent years appealing to the South Dakota State Legislature. After feeling like his concerns weren’t being heard, he decided to run for U.S. House and be the voice for South Dakota. Hendrickson has worn many hats. He was a police officer, owned his own construction business and was an insurance agent. Now he owns his…
MOUNT VERNON, S.D. – Ron Wieczorek knows how to work hard. The oldest of seven children he learned at a young age what it means to fight for, and take care of, the things he loves. “We owned a dairy barn down there when I was born. When I was twelve years old my father lost his leg in a…
SIOUX FALLS, SD – Business and community leaders in Sioux Falls learned where the major party candidates for governor stand on important issues at a Downtown Sioux Falls Rotary event Monday. In the final debate between Republican Congresswoman Kristi Noem and Democratic State Senator Billie Sutton, the candidates covered a wide variety of topics, from education to agriculture, taxes and…
South Dakota voters can be fairly lax when it comes to getting the polls, a new study shows. With a key midterm coming up November 6, deciding the next governor of our state, along with seats in the Senate, House and other big local races and issues, WalletHub points out only a quarter of our overall population voted in the…
PIERRE, S.D. – Last week, South Dakota’s Democrats selected the nominees voters will find on the ballot this fall. This week, people are gathering in Pierre for the State GOP Convention. There’s a lot of excitement from State Republicans for this year’s election. “Obviously every election is important but in this one we have to look at how we’re going…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.- Candidates and political enthusiasts from across the state gathered in Sioux Falls for the South Dakota Democratic Convention. Party leaders say they are confident about this year’s races in what is generally a red state. Democratic leaders are making bold predictions this election season. “2018 will be historic for South Dakota Democrats and we are going to…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Two senators from different sides of the fence sat down together in Sioux Falls on President’s Day to discuss big issues. Many of these topics tug at the heart strings, such as last week’s fatal shootings in Florida. With elections on the horizon, there wasn’t a shortage of topics for Kris Langer (R) and Billie Sutton…
As we head in to election season in Sioux Falls, we are profiling each of the seven candidates aiming for the mayor’s seat. This week’s “Someone You Should Know” is a man who says he has the experience in business and local government to help shape the future of Sioux Falls. 45 years ago Jim Entenman and his brother Lonny…
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) – The campaign for a constitutional amendment that would move South Dakota to an open primary system for many political races raised more than $205,000 in 2017. Open Primaries South Dakota reported in January that it ended the year with roughly $1,000 on hand. Nearly all the campaign’s spending went to “Marketing.” The campaign’s largest donor was…
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) – Gov. Dennis Daugaard says South Dakota is asking the Trump administration to allow the state to require some Medicaid health coverage recipients to work to obtain the benefits. Daugaard announced the proposal Tuesday during his State of the State address. He says the change would apply to about 4,500 low-income, able-bodied parents who aren’t caring for…
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) – South Dakota’s chief elections official has cleared a measure that would ban out-of-state fundraising for citizens’ initiatives to appear on the November ballot. Secretary of State Shantel Krebs’ office said Thursday the ballot question will be named Initiated Measure 24. The measure’s approval could be challenged. The initiative would prohibit contributions to ballot question committees from…
WASHINGTON (AP) – Senate Republicans are planning a final, uphill push to erase President Barack Obama’s health care law. But Democrats and their allies are going all-out to stop the drive. The initial Republican effort crashed in July in the GOP-run Senate. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said after that defeat that he’d not revisit the issue without the votes to…
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A Sioux Falls man, who doesn’t consider himself a politician, is the newest candidate to announce his bid for South Dakota’s lone U.S. House seat. George Hendrickson is the only candidate running as an independent, so far. He knows it won’t be easy, but says he and his family are already overcoming great odds. “If he…
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) – A House panel has approved a bill that would impose a new requirement for some single parents who are seeking food stamps. The Health and Human Services Committee voted unanimously Thursday to approve the bill. It would require Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participants to cooperate with child support enforcement to get or enforce a child support…
WASHINGTON (AP) – Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is trying to mend fences with educators, parents and activists across the country following a bruising confirmation battle. Addressing Education Department staff members on Wednesday, DeVos vowed to work with everyone, including her opponents, in ensuring the best education for American children. DeVos is a wealthy Republican donor and school choice champion. She…
